Melvin Belli facts for kids
{{infobox person | name = Melvin Belli | image = Melvin Belli 1967.jpg | caption = Belli in 1967 | birth_name = Melvin Mouron Belli | birth_date = July 29, 1907 | birth_place = Sonora, California, U.S. | death_date = July 9, 1996 (aged 88) | death_place = San Francisco, California, U.S. | occupation = Lawyer, author | children = 6
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Melvin Mouron Belli (July 29, 1907 – July 9, 1996) was a famous American lawyer and writer. People knew him as "The King of Torts" because he was very good at winning cases where someone was hurt due to another person's fault. Insurance companies sometimes called him "Melvin Bellicose" because he was such a strong opponent.
Melvin Belli worked with many famous people. Some of his clients included Zsa Zsa Gabor, Errol Flynn, Chuck Berry, Muhammad Ali, and The Rolling Stones. Throughout his career, he helped his clients win over $600 million in money for their injuries or losses. He also represented Jack Ruby, who was involved in a very famous event after the assassination of President John F. Kennedy.
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Early Life and Education
Melvin Belli was born in Sonora, California, a town in the Sierra Nevada mountains. This area was famous for the California Gold Rush. His family came from Switzerland and had Italian roots. His grandmother, Anna Mouron, was the first female pharmacist in California.
In the 1920s, his family moved to Stockton, California. Melvin went to Stockton High School there. He later went to the University of California, Berkeley and graduated in 1929. After traveling the world, he returned to the U.C. Berkeley School of Law. He earned his law degree in 1933.
His Amazing Legal Career
After becoming a lawyer, Melvin Belli's first job was unusual. He pretended to be a homeless person for a government program called the Works Progress Administration. He rode trains to see how the Great Depression affected people who had no homes.
His first big win as a lawyer happened soon after he finished law school. He represented a cable car worker who was injured. To show the jury exactly what happened, Belli brought a model of the cable car intersection and parts of the machinery into the courtroom. This was a new way to present evidence.
Fighting for Consumer Rights
Melvin Belli was known as the "King of Torts" for his personal injury cases. But he also helped create important rules for consumer rights law. He argued several cases in the 1940s and 1950s that set the stage for future lawsuits. These cases helped people like Ralph Nader fight for safer products.
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One famous case was Escola v. Coca-Cola Bottling Co. (1944). A waitress in California was hurt when a Coca-Cola bottle exploded. Belli argued that products should be safe for everyone who uses them, not just the first buyer. He said that if a product is faulty, the company should be responsible, even if they weren't directly careless. This idea became known as strict liability for product defects.
In his book Ready for the Plaintiff, Belli shared stories of how lawyers won cases. For example, he wrote about a builder who used wrong materials in a building. A piece of the building fell off and hurt someone. The injured person sued the builder and won because the builder had not followed safety rules.
After winning a big court case, Belli had a fun tradition. He would raise a Jolly Roger flag over his office in San Francisco. He would also fire a cannon from his office roof to celebrate the victory and announce a party!
The Jack Ruby Case
Melvin Belli took on one of his most famous cases when he represented Jack Ruby. Ruby was accused of shooting and killing Lee Harvey Oswald. Belli tried to show that Ruby had mental health issues.
Ruby was found guilty in March 1964. However, in 1966, Ruby's conviction was overturned. This meant he would get a new trial because he had not received a fair one. Sadly, Ruby passed away from cancer before the new trial could happen.
Later Career Highlights
In 1969, a person claiming to be the Zodiac Killer called San Francisco police. This person said they would call a TV talk show if Melvin Belli or another lawyer were on the air. Police hoped to catch the person. The caller did call but only spoke a few words before hanging up many times. Belli also received a letter from the Zodiac Killer that same year.
In the 1960s, Belli helped start the California Trial Lawyers Association. This group, now called the Consumer Attorneys of California, helps set standards for lawyers. It also provides ongoing education to help consumers have a better chance in court. This is especially important when they are up against large companies.
Author and Speaker
Melvin Belli wrote several books. His six-volume book Modern Trials (written between 1954 and 1960) is a classic textbook. It teaches lawyers how to use evidence in court, like models or pictures. Belli's way of using clear evidence and expert witnesses became common practice in courtrooms.
He also wrote his autobiography, My Life on Trial. This book tells the story of his life and the important events he was part of. He also wrote an introduction for a book about chiropractic care. With John Carlova, Belli wrote "Belli For Your Malpractice Defense." This book gave advice to doctors on how to avoid legal problems.
Personal Life
Melvin Belli was married six times. His youngest child, Melia, became an art history expert. She is now a professor of Asian art history at the University of Texas at Arlington.
Death
Melvin Belli passed away at his home in San Francisco on July 9, 1996. He was 88 years old. He died from complications related to pancreatic cancer. At the time of his death, he had three sons, three daughters, and twelve grandchildren. He is buried in Odd Fellows Cemetery in Sonora, California, the town where he was born. Many remember him as one of the "most famous lawyers in America."
Film and TV Appearances
Melvin Belli also appeared as an actor in several TV shows and movies:
- 1968, Star Trek (as Gorgan in the episode "And the Children Shall Lead")
- 1968, Wild in the Streets (as himself)
- 1970, Gimme Shelter (as himself)
- 1972, Arnie (TV Series, as Jonathan Berrenger, lawyer)
- 1973, Ground Zero (also known as The Golden Gate Is Ground Zero)
- 1978, Lady of the House (TV, as Mayor Jim of San Francisco)
- 1979, Whodunnit? (TV series, as himself)
- 1984, Guilty or Innocent (TV series, as himself)
- 1988, Hunter (TV series, as himself in the episode "True Confessions")
- 1991, Murder, She Wrote (TV series, as Judge Harley in the episode "From the Horse's Mouth")
- 2000, American Justice, "Divorce Wars" (TV series) (appeared after his death)
